The Honor is Yours

Meet the 1st Judicial District judge candidates

It may be the most important local official you don’t get to vote for (at least not right away)—a person who can ruin lives with the thwack of a gavel.

At 8:30 am on Nov. 5, a select group of 17 men and women will meet at the courthouse on Catron Street in Santa Fe to evaluate the candidates to replace retiring 1st Judicial District Judge James Hall.

By chance, there are as many members of this judicial nominating commission as there are candidates for the job. Their combined applications, obtained by SFR, total more than 650 pages.

“You will see a lot of Democrats—locally, behind the scenes—pushing for people with the governor,” Santa Fe County Sheriff Greg Solano says. “People don’t realize how much the party’s actually involved in some of these judge positions, and the jockeying.”

The commission includes eight Democrats and eight Republicans, plus Chairman Kevin Washburn, dean of the University of New Mexico law school.

“You have what’s essentially a peer review committee pick three people, and then the governor picks one out of those three,” County Democratic Chairman Richard Ellenberg says. “It’s a bifurcated process. The first part isn’t overly political.” The appointed judge will run in a partisan race in the next general election, and for retention thereafter.

T Glenn EllingtonAge: 48 Born: EspañolaEmployer: Ellington & Ellington LLC in Santa FeFact: Hobbies include gardening, astronomy, basketball and weavingExperience: Appointed Taxation & Revenue secretary
by Gov. Gary Johnson, former chief public defender for New Mexico, former 1st District judge, former judicial nominating commissionerReference: 1st District Attorney Angela “Spence” Pacheco, who writes, “he has always conducted himself in an ethical and honest manner”

Steven G FarberAge: 63Born: Philadelphia, Pa. Employer: Solo practice in Santa FeFact: Alpine skier who enjoys watching C-SPAN, “reading contemporary periodicals and throughout the week trying to finish the Sunday New York Times”Experience: Assistant attorney general under state AG Toney Anaya, former Santa Fe city councilor, parked cars at a hotel in Atlantic CityReference: Former Gov. Anaya, who praises Farber’s success in prosecuting public corruption cases and his “deep understanding of the balance of power” in government

Caren I FriedmanAge: 44Born: Baltimore, Md.Employer: Solo practice in Santa FeFact: Former Johnnie who practices yoga and is married to the campus director of Southwest Acupuncture CollegeExperience: Former appellate attorney with the US Equal Opportunity Employment Commission in Washington, DCReference: State Court of Appeals Judge Linda Vanzi, who thinks Friedman “would be the type of judge any lawyer would love to appear [before]”

Kurt B GilbertAge: 37Born: AlbuquerqueEmployer: Rodey, Dickason, Sloan, Akin & Robb PA in Santa FeFact: Spent two years working the kitchen of a frat house at Northwestern University in IllinoisExperience: Mainly personal injury and malpractice casesReference: Lawyer John Pound, who writes: “I do not view the process as one where a lawyer chooses a particular candidate as a ‘favorite.’ In that spirit, I have already written a letter to the Commission concerning another candidate…”

Michael R JonesAge: 39Born: OhioEmployer: Clark & Jones, Attorneys at Law, LLCFact: Worked several summers as a wrangler at Philmont Scout Ranch in CimarronExperience: Former state senate analyst, former assistant attorney general, former 1st District prosecutorReference: State Sen. Majority Floor Leader Michael Sanchez, D-Valencia, who writes that Jones “created a positive work environment”

Alisa C LauerAge: 45; Born: NebraskaEmployer: 1st District Court staff attorney under Chief Judge Stephen Pfeffer (also a member of the nominating commission)Fact: Writes fiction on the sideExperience: Associate staff attorney for the state Supreme Court, assistant public defender in Santa FeReferences: Soon-to-retire 1st District Judge Daniel Sanchez and Chief Public Defender for New Mexico Hugh Dangler, who writes that because of budget cuts, “we have an even greater need for ethical, hard-working judges”

Mary Marlowe SommerAge: 52Born: Pasadena, Calif.Employer: 1st District Court domestic relations hearing officer under Judge Raymond Ortiz Fact: Worked as a production assistant for The McLaughlin Group on PBSExperience: Assistant attorney general under AG Paul Bardacke (who chaired Gov. Richardson’s 2002 campaign)Reference: Judge Ortiz, who has “never seen her loose [sic] patience,” and John Pound (see above)

Sarah M SingletonAge: 60Born: Ann Arbor, Mich.Employer: Montgomery & Andrews PA in Santa FeFact: “I am one of the hardest workers at my firm”Experience: Current board member of the Legal Services Corporation, which funds legal aid programs throughout the US; former state bar presidentReference: Lawyer Maureen Sanders, who writes that “Sarah is one of the smartest lawyers I know”

Nathaniel V ThompkinsAge: 51Born: Wilmington, Del.Employer: Jewell & Thompkins PCFact: Moved eight times in the past eight yearsExperience: Personal injury lawyer; president of Zia Power, a solar companyReference: Lawyer Michael Gross, who praises Thompkins and his fiancé for taking in two children “who would otherwise have likely been placed in foster homes” after the death of their father

David K ThomsonAge: 41Born: Santa FeEmployer: New Mexico deputy attorney generalFact: “Past volunteer for the 4th of July Pancake breakfast on the plaza”Experience: Former legislative aide to US Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-NMReference: NM Chief Deputy Attorney General Albert Lama, who writes, “Both Attorney General [Gary] King and I believe that David possesses those qualities necessary to be District Court Judge”

Aaron J WolfAge: 60Born: Los Angeles, Calif.Employer: Cuddy & McCarthy LLPFact: Music director at Temple Beth ShalomExperience: Domestic relations lawReference: 1st District Judge Barbara Vigil, who writes that one of Wolf’s “finest qualities is his ability to get right to the point”